Chapter 173: Infiltration

The changes among the nobles of the Land of Wind and the Land of Fire only flickered through Jiraiya's mind before he cast them aside.

Long-standing habits as a ninja caused Jiraiya to overlook a certain special possibility; of course, even if he knew that the high-ranking officials of various countries were currently controlled by Genjutsu, it would not actually mean much.

"Regardless... let us first sneak into the Sand Ninja territory and inquire if there is any intelligence on Uchiha Feiyu!"

"Once we find out Uchiha Feiyu's objective, we will be able to tell whether he is a friend or a foe!"

Jiraiya and his two disciples were still discussing intelligence, while Uchiha Feiyu, who had been observing them, frowned.

"Jiraiya and the others actually possess the power of Yin-Yang Release?"

Just a moment ago, Uchiha Feiyu had cast a Genjutsu through the Sharingan Crystal Ball in the sky; although the power of the Genjutsu was greatly reduced without an Array Disk, theoretically, an ordinary Shadow-level Ninja should absolutely not have been able to resist it.

Yet, the three of them seemed to have felt nothing at all, and the Genjutsu had naturally broken before they even perceived its existence.

"However, they were completely immune to the Sharingan Genjutsu, yet why did they not discover the existence of the Genjutsu? Hmm... it seems there is help from an external force?"

Adjusting the Sharingan Crystal Ball in the sky and continuously zooming in on the images of the three, Uchiha Feiyu soon discovered black ear studs on their ears.

At this moment, Konan, who had been silent and was the most immature in personality, spoke with a blank expression.

"But, we didn't see any enemies just now, did we?"

"It's nothing, Nagato? What's wrong? Was there something wrong just now?"

"I am afraid it is not just that; currently, the three of them, Jiraiya, are likely just like the Pain Six Paths, capable of using a portion of the Rinnegan ninjutsu, and as living people, they can possess the power of the Pain Six Paths while still being able to use their own various ninjutsu."

"It is hard to say; I did not detect any ninja with powerful chakra in the vicinity just now... perhaps the opponent hid too deeply, and I did not discover them, or perhaps they used some medium to cast the Genjutsu."

"Master Jiraiya, Yahiko, Konan, are you all alright!"

Yahiko asked with some confusion, and then he heard Nagato's heavy voice:

"Tsk... it seems there is no way to deal with them using the simplest method!"

Uchiha Feiyu let out a soft hum, already prepared to enter the fray himself.

Jiraiya's expression turned serious, and he spoke in a low voice:

"So concealed... the opponent must be using Genjutsu, and what the Uchiha Clan is most skilled at is precisely Genjutsu!"

On the other side, Jiraiya and the others had originally been completely unaware of the Genjutsu, but the ear studs on their ears trembled twice in an instant, and then Nagato's voice rang in their ears.

There was another possibility that Jiraiya did not voice, which was that the opponent used a ninjutsu like a telescope Crystal Ball to cast Genjutsu directly from an ultra-long distance!

But even with Jiraiya's extensive knowledge, the mere thought of such a situation felt fantastical; could a level of Genjutsu like this really be something a human could perform?

"In any case, everyone should be careful. Although we haven't reached the Sunagakure yet, we are already in the Land of Wind, which is the opponent's territory..."

In the original work, Nagato used the Pain Six Paths made from corpses, but this does not mean that living ninjas cannot become the Pain Six Paths; one must know that Uchiha Obito even used Reanimated jinchuriki to serve as the Pain Six Paths, which shows that the Pain Six Paths do not necessarily require corpses.

"Just a moment ago, I felt the Yin-Yang Release chakra left in the ear studs being triggered. If my estimation is correct, someone must have secretly made a move against you."

However, the current Nagato is not the cripple from the original work, and he is full of trust in Konan, Yahiko, and Jiraiya; worrying about their safety and sharing the power of the Rinnegan with them is a normal operation.

Yahiko turned his head to look at his surroundings and asked Jiraiya; Jiraiya hesitated for a moment before saying:

"So, he is nearby?"

Jiraiya shook his head and said earnestly:

"Although the vast majority of Genjutsu must be cast face-to-face, some top-tier Genjutsu can even be cast the moment one is observed!"

It is just that if living people are used as the Pain Six Paths, Nagato would certainly not be able to control them completely, which is why he ultimately chose to use corpses instead of living people, who have higher theoretical Power Levels.

"These ear studs... they should be made using Yin-Yang Release. I understand now; Nagato used these ear studs to input Yin-Yang Release-level chakra into them, which is why they were immune to my Genjutsu."

"And the person who made the move must have used power close to the peak of Yin-Yang Release; otherwise, it would have been impossible to trigger my Yin-Yang Release power while leaving you completely unaware."

Jiraiya was halfway through his sentence when Yahiko suddenly frowned:

"Master Jiraiya, the opponent shouldn't know our objective, right! In this situation, why would the opponent suddenly make a move against us?"

"This..."

Hearing his disciple's reminder, Jiraiya finally reacted, his expression changing slightly:

"Either the opponent is monitoring the entire Land of Wind, and any ninja with powerful strength who enters will be trapped in a Genjutsu..."

"Or the opponent has already learned our intelligence through some means..."

Once these words were spoken, the expressions of the three were not very pleasant; if it were the former, just how powerful would the opponent's strength be?

And if it were the latter... besides the four of them, Jiraiya and his disciples, only a few high-ranking members of the Akatsuki organization knew their specific actions!

"It seems this operation will not be so peaceful!"

Jiraiya said with some emotion; just a moment ago, he still felt that Uchiha Feiyu might not be that Destroyer of the World, but now, he had confirmed his own thoughts.

However, regardless, although no casualties were caused, a shadow had been cast over the hearts of the three.

It was impossible for the three of them to just retreat like this; they had to at least go and see the situation at the Sunagakure before deciding whether to evacuate. Otherwise, if they ran away just after stepping into the Land of Wind, they wouldn't have gathered any intelligence at all!

At this moment, Uchiha Feiyu, through the Kaleidoscope Crystal Ball in the sky, saw the three of them continue walking into the desert after discussing for a while, and he immediately revealed a smile.

"Tsk... is this really a case of 'knowing there are tigers in the mountain, yet heading toward the tiger mountain'? But this way, why does it feel like I am more of a villain?"

"Forget it—anyway, I am already one of the biggest villains in this Ninja World; I will just wait for Jiraiya and the others at the Sunagakure!"

"But before that, I should make some preparations! These guys have Nagato as a backup; who knows, they might be summoned back by Nagato using the Summoning Technique halfway through the fight!"

The Dojutsu of the Rinnegan has infinite wonders, and it can even summon humans with humans. At this moment, the three of them are carrying Nagato's Yin-Yang Release products, and using this as a coordinate, if they encounter danger, Nagato will definitely summon them back.

"But fortunately, I also have a way to cut off the power of Yin-Yang Release; I just need to make some preparations first."

Jiraiya and the three stepped into the desert of the Land of Wind. The environment of the Land of Wind had improved quite a bit now, and even the large stretches of desert had been divided into several parts by green vegetation, making it much easier to walk than before.

However, although their bodies felt much lighter, their minds had been very suppressed. After being alerted by Nagato, the three had been extremely cautious, especially Jiraiya, who had mastered Sage Art; with his guard up, he did indeed feel a faint sense of being observed.

That was the Sharingan Crystal Ball in the sky, which had been staring at the three of them, and it was precisely because of this feeling of being stared at that Jiraiya felt like he had needles on his back, and his two disciples were also keeping their nerves taut under his warning.

This resulted in the three of them feeling quite exhausted by the time they walked through several deserts and were about to approach the Sunagakure.

"Stop for a moment; this is not a solution. We only want to secretly observe the Sunagakure, not start a war with one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages!"

Jiraiya waved his hand and said to Konan and Yahiko, and the two immediately stopped their steps.

"Teacher, are we still being watched right now?"

"We have been under the other party's gaze the entire time without escaping... If I am not mistaken, the technique the other party is using should be something similar to the Telescope Technique. By recording our chakra and then using a medium like a crystal ball, they can observe our every move."

The Great Toad Immortal and Jiraiya's teacher, the Third Hokage, both possess this kind of crystal ball Telescope Technique. Although Jiraiya cannot use this ninjutsu, he at least has some understanding of it and knows the capabilities of this technique.

"Wanting to escape the crystal ball technique is simple if you say it's simple, and difficult if you say it's difficult..."

Jiraiya glanced at his two disciples and said in a low voice:

"The simplest method—you just need to submerge into the ground!"

After speaking, Jiraiya grabbed his two disciples with both hands and directly activated an Earth Release technique:

"Earth Release—Subterranean Voyage Technique!"

The three of them quickly submerged into the soil layer, and by the time Uchiha Feiyu was slightly stunned, they had already vanished without a trace.

Jiraiya assumed that what Uchiha Feiyu was using was a ninjutsu similar to the crystal ball Telescope Technique, which is why he used this method of submerging underground.

But it must be said that his move hit the mark by accident; Uchiha Feiyu's Sharingan Satellite placed in the sky indeed had no way to see the situation beneath the earth.

"No... to be precise, it seems that the vast majority of sensory-type ninjutsu can be bypassed by hiding underground. As long as one hides deep enough underground, even the Byakugan or Kagura Shingan would likely be unable to find anyone."

"Jiraiya is a guy with rich experience. He seemed to be heading directly toward the Sunagakure along the way, but he likely had already made preparations in his heart; it is impossible for him to walk straight into a trap."

Seeing Jiraiya's approach, even Uchiha Feiyu felt a hint of trouble. After the other party hid underground, it became very difficult for him to find their tracks again. Even if they emerged from the ground again, he would have to use the Sharingan Satellite overhead to scan the entire Land of Wind once more to find them.

But how much effort would it take for him to scan the Land of Wind once, and how much effort would it take for the other party to dig a hole underground? In this way, the one in a difficult position is Uchiha Feiyu himself.

"A bunch of troublesome guys... but it doesn't matter. If it really doesn't work, I'll just use a move to draw the firewood from under the cauldron!"

"You are in danger, and Nagato can pull you back, but if Nagato encounters danger... then who can save him?"

Having made up his mind, Uchiha Feiyu directly called for Xia Rixing and handed her a Flying Thunder God Kunai.

"Xia Rixing, you possess the flight ability of the Peacock Mysterious Method, and your speed is the fastest in the entire Sunagakure. Now, you take my Flying Thunder God Kunai and make a trip to the Rain Ninja Village!"

"After arriving at the location, use your chakra to activate the power of the kunai."

Xia Rixing took the Flying Thunder God Kunai, knelt on one knee, and replied respectfully:

"Understood, Lord Feiyu!"

Seeing Uchiha Feiyu wave his hand, Xia Rixing then exited the Kazekage Office. Subsequently, a pair of brilliant wings grew from her back, and she soared into the sky, disappearing into the heavens.

Jiraiya and the others circled around underground several times before emerging from the ground again. Just after emerging from the ground, Jiraiya slightly closed his eyes, and his whole person became "silent."

This is the method of calming the heart that Jiraiya realized through practicing Sage Art. In this state of meditation, he can not only perceive the Natural Energy between heaven and earth but also maximize his own perception.

A moment later, Jiraiya, who had been as silent as a stone statue, suddenly came to life and opened his eyes:

"Hahaha, success! That feeling of being watched has disappeared. This time, we have shaken off the other party's surveillance!"

Hearing Jiraiya's words, Yahiko and Konan finally let out a breath, looked at each other, and revealed smiles.

"Let's prepare! While the other party hasn't found us, find a way to disguise our identities. I have already taught you the Toad Flat Shadow Technique. When the time comes, find a Sand Ninja to control, and then infiltrate the Sunagakure!"

Jiraiya's Toad Flat Shadow Technique is a ninjutsu that involves infiltrating the opponent's shadow, turning one's body into thin paper, and attaching to the shadow to control the opponent. Unless it is a face-to-face confrontation, it is definitely impossible to discover them using remote sensory ninjutsu like the Telescope Technique.

With a plan, Jiraiya and the three of them soon found a patrol of Sand Ninja near the Sunagakure.

Jiraiya and the three of them first used Genjutsu to control this team of Sand Ninja and asked for some intelligence. Although Uchiha Feiyu had always worn a mask while in the Sunagakure, there were too many special aspects about him, which allowed Jiraiya and the three of them to obtain some information.

(End of this chapter)